Bottom ring for hot tops



Sept. 13, 1938.

w. M. CHARMAN 2,129,821

BOTTOM RING FOR HOT TOPS Filed Jan. 28, 1931 Patented Sept. 13, 1938 i m UNlTED STATES a amaez BOTTOM RING ron nor were Walter M. filial-man, Cleveland Heights, Ohio Application January 28, 1931, Serial No. 511,733 12 Claims. (Cl. 22-44:?)

This invention relates to bottom rings for-hot Other-objects and features of novelty will aptops, and hasreference particularly to improve pear as I proceed with the description of those ments in non-floating hot tops of that class in embodiments of the invention which, for the purwhich metal casings are employed. Such hot p s s o h Present pp I S- tops rest upon the ingot mold during the pouring trated in the accomp y drawing. in which 5 operation, and may or may not be anchored to Figure 1 is a Vertical Sectional View Of a hot p the mold. The joint between the casing and the n flalgmeht 0 the uppe end of an ingot m ld hot top must be relatively tight in order to prein connection w which y v nt n is emvent molten metal from entering it. Consel l0 quently part or all of the upper surf of th Fig. 2 is a similar view with the pad and lining Iii ingot mold is usually machined, and the lower element d dend surface of the hot top is likewise machined, Fi 3 i a f sm n pl n vi w f on corner for the purpose of truing up these two surfaces of e b t om r to meet throughout their extent. In s ite of 4 s a c o ect v a e su s a these precautions molten metal sometimes finds W111}! 011 the line of and its way into the joint, solidifies and then tends la is a d a elcvational v w f a fastenin to hang up the ingot thereby interfering'with whlchtmay be employed for holding t e bottom its natural shrinkage during cooling, and serves ring the a to weld the two surface together In the drawing a fragment of an ingot mold is A portion of the lower end of such acasing is illustrated at it, having a rabbet H with a trued as also necessarily exposed to the molten metal upper Surface formed Preferably y machiningpoured through th hot top, After series of The mold may have a cavity of any desired cross operations this exposed metal is adversely afsectional form; for instance approx mately fected and, in the course of time, becomes pitted rectangular, approximately ou d, fluted Or t e .15 and cracked to such an extent that the proliketuberances and fins on the ingot resulting from The casing of the hot p wn a 5 0f the flow of metal into such inequalities, interiron 08st -O a plurality of p If t e fere considerably with the operation of stripping casing 18 t m de in One piece it 1 are bolted the hot top from the ingot a d finally make or otherwise secured together in a more or less new casing necessary. By the use of my in permanent fashion. The casing comprises a 30 tion however the casing proper has an indefinite lowelklhwaldly extending ledge l3 running P e life, and the part which is to be replaced is relaembly entirely around the i and y h ve tively small and of relatively low cost. I B150 an inwardly extendin uppe dge I4. The on of the objects of th in ti therefore inner wall of the casing between these two ledges is the provision in a hot top of the non-floating is covered with a heat sulating lining which, 35 type of means for protecting the lower end of in the Present ce, a e the o m Of two the hot top casing, which means shall be rem tiers of refractory blocks l5 and It. The lower able and replaceable when occasion demands. tie! is Supported W y p r i l y pon the Another object is the provision of securing ledge 1 40 means for the removable section adapted to fail Here'liofole it has been the practice to a ne 4i) when subjected to unusual strains such as are the lower end Surface of the hot p casing, 0 1- exerted in separating the hot top from the mold responding ot lower su a of ed 3 of the when these two parts tendto stick together on Present disclosure. d let it rest p e maaccount of the welding action of lt metal chined surface of the ingot. In accordance with above l i d, or m t i i th t t from myv invention however the lower end of the 025- as the ingot when adherence between them becomes mg P may m not be machined, ll; is strong due to the metal entering the inequalities covered y an a xiliary ledge member I! which f the bottom ring, is interposed between the mold and the casing Still another object of the invention is the pro- T s au ary em er e ends under the vision of a yieldable pad or gasket bet t ledge i3 and protects the entire lower and inner 50 hot top casing and ingot mold in order t efi ct surfaces thereof. It has an inner rim portion a good seal for this joint, and preferably an exwhich stands flush with the upp rface of tension of this pad or gasket inwardly and upledge l3, and may assist that ledge in the support wardly toconstitute a lining for a portion of the of the blocks l5. This inner rim portion also '55 hot top as a protection for the inner wallthereof. stands flush or, nearly flush with the inner sur- 66 face of lining blocks IS. The ledge member I! may be machined on its lower surface, and on account of its relatively small size the machining may be more easily effected than could be the machining of the casing proper. The auxiliary ledge is preferably made as an annulus in a single piece, but obviously may be constructed of a plurality of pieces if desired. It is detachably mounted upon the casing by suitable means such as willhereinafter be described in connection with the form of the invention illustrated in Fig. 2.

In the latter figure the annular auxiliary ledge member I! is the same as in Fig. 1, except that it is provided with a seriesof holes for the reception of plugs l8, made preferably of wood. These plugs are renewed after each heat and are put in with a driving fit. After they are in place a non-inflammable annular gasket and lining member I9, made preferably although not necessarily in one piece, and formed to fit snugly, is pushed into place covering the lower end surface of the ring l1 and extending over its inner surface exposed to the molten metal and up over the joint between the ring and the blocks |5. Nails 20 with large heads are then driven through the member 19 into the plugs I8, thereby securing the member Hi to the hot top. when the molten metal is poured the plugs I8 become charred and lose their grip upon the nails 20, so that when the hot top is stripped from the ingot the member l9 remains upon the ingot, affording an excellent parting surface. Other means, adapted to fail when the not top is stripped from the mold, may of course be substituted for that described without departing from the invention, or the member I9 may be held inplace by friction alone.

By the term non-inflammable as herein applied to the member I! I intend to include any material which will not burn or which will burn ,with difiiculty, fibrous material being preferred. This material should also be somewhat resilient or yielding so as to form a gasket seal between the ring I! and the horizontal surface ofrabbet II, and to this end is shown on the drawing as corrugated board, whereby the hot metal is prevented from flowing into this joint, hanging up the ingot, and producing shrinkage cracks therein.

The ring ll, regardless of whether or not it be covered at each pouring with the combined gasket and lining member l9, may be attached to the casing l2 by removable fastenings which are adapted to fail under heavy strains. This is not 511,732, filed January 28, 1931, and consists ofheaded pins 2| mounted with their heads down in slots 22 formed in the ring II. The pins 2| are projected through holes drilled in the ledge IS in positions to register with the slots 22, and wedges 23 are then driven through slots in the pins 2| so positioned that the wedges may bear upon the upper surface of the ledge. When an auxiliary ledge is detached from or applied to the casing,,the lining blocks or a portion of them are removed, this work being done preferably with the casing in an inverted position. Certain of the blocks are chipped away, as indicated at 24, at their lower outer edges in order to make room for the wedges 23 and the upper ends of pins 2|.

These fastenings are arranged at intervals throughout the perimeter of the hot top, and in the case of rectangular hot tops they are generally placed at the corners, as indicated in Fig. 3. When the auxiliary ledge member H is attached to the casing l2, this assembly constitutes a metallic casing. Consequently, the term metallic casing, as hereinafter used, is to be considered as descriptive either of the casing l2 alone or of the assembly of that casing with the ring So long as a ring |'l, used as disclosed in Fig. 1, remains relatively new, and particularly if its inner surface is coated with a suitable parting compound, the hot top may be stripped from the mold without any considerable difiiculty. After the metal of this ring has become pitted and cracked however, due to repeated contact with molten metal, the stripping of the hot top becomes increasingly difficult. The ring should then be removed and a new one put in its place. In the event that such replacement is delayed too long, or in the event that molten metal finds its way into the joint between the ring and the rabbet ll of the mold, welding thesetwo parts together, it may become practically impossible to strip the ring from the ingot. 'The force applied to pull the hot top away from the ingot will then cause the wedges 23 to cut through the metal at the upper ends of pins 2|, and the casing |2 will then part from the ring ll, carrying the lining blocks l5 and IS with it. Where the additional lining member and gasket I9 is employed however, the ring ll 'will have a much greater life and there will seldom be any breaking away of the ring H from the casing. The member Is also, of course, possesses the same advantages whether or not there is a replaceable lower ring for the casing.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In combination, a hot top adaptedto rest upon the upper end of an ingot mold, said hot top comprising a metallic casing having a lower ledgefor the support of lining members, a metallic member covering the lower endof the easing so as to engage the mold when the hot top is supported thereon, and means for detachably securing said metallic member to said casing.

' 2. In combination, a hot top casing having a lower ledge for the support of lining members, a metallic 1.. ember covering the lower end of the casing having a lower surface adapted to conform with and to rest upon a trued upper surface of an ingot mold, said metallic member extending inwardly beyond the inner casing wall, and

means for detachably securing said member to said casing.

3. In combination, a-hot top casing having an inwardly extending ledge at the bottom thereof, a renewable metallic member covering the lower and inner surfaces of said ledge, the lower surface of said member adapted to conform with and to rest upon a trued upper surface of an ingot mold,,and means for detachably securing-said member to said casing.

4. In a hot top adapted to rest uponthe upper end of an ingot mold, a metallic casing having a lower inwardly extending ledge, lining elements supported thereupon, and a non-metallic, non

inflammable yieldable strip covering the lower end surface; of the hot top and extending up-- wardly for a distance over the inner-surface of said liningelements, the lower portion of said strip being adapted to separate the hot top from the mold and form a seal between them.

-5. In a hot top adapted to rest upon the upper end of an ingot mold, a metallic casing having a lower inwardly extending ledge, lining elements supported thereupon, a renewable metallic member covering the lower and inner surfaces of said ledge, and a non-metallic, non-inflammable, yieldable strip covering the lower surface of. said renewable member and extending upwardly for a distance over the inner surfaces of said lining elements, the lower portion of said strip being adapted to separate the hot top from the mold andform a seal between them.

6. The herein described ingot mold assembly comprising upper and lower ingot mold elements matching horizontally to form a continuous mold cavity a substantial portion of which is within the lower mold element, and a highly compressible sealing layer of cellular fibrous ma-' terial combustible under temperature conditions ex sting during the teeming of. an ingot lying horizontally between the adjacent surfaces of the lower and upper mold elements.

7. The herein described ingot mold assembly comprising upper and lower ingot mold elements matching horizontally to form a contlnuousmold cavity a substantial portion of which is within the lower mold element, and a compressible sealing layer of corrugated board combustible under temperature conditions existing during the I teeming of an ingot lying horizontally between the adjacent surfaces of the lower and upper mold elements.

8. The herein described ingot mold assembly comprising upper and lower mold elements, the lower mold element constituting a. support and closure for the upper mold element, and a compressible sealing layer of corrugated board combustible under temperature conditions existing during the teeming of. an ingot lying horizontally between the lower and upper mold elements.

9. The herein described ingot mold assembly comprising upper and lower mold elements, the lower mold element constituting a support and closure for the upper mold'element, and a highly compressible sealing layer of cellular fibrous material combustible under temperature conditions existing during the teeming of an ingot lying between the adjacent surfaces of the lower and upper mold elements.

10. The herein described ingot mold assembly comprising an ingot mold divided horizontally into a plurality of ingot mold elements, and a thin sealing layer of corrugated board combustible under temperature conditions existing during the teeming of an ingot lying horizontally between adjacent faces of the mold elements.

11. The herein described ingot mold assembly comprising an ingot mold divided horizontally into a plurality of ingot mold elements, and a highly compressible sealing layer of cellular fibrous material combustible under temperature conditions existing during the teeming of an ingot. lying horizontally between adjacent surfaces of themold elements.

12. In a hot top adapted to be organized with an ingot mold, to provide a continuation of the mold cavity, which hot top includes a surface area which, in assembly with the mold'lies adjacent the face of the mold, the combination of a gasket member located against said surface area, said gasket member being formed of pulpous material and being cellular in structure, 'so as to provide a plurality of air cells between said surface area and the adjacent face of the mold.

WALTER M. CHARMAN. 

